Exercise is considered the most effective non-drug treatment for the pain associated with arthritis. Everyone with or without arthritis should be doing regular, appropriate exercise.
Regular exercise can:
- Reduce joint pain;
- Improve joint mobility and flexibility;
- Increase muscle strength
- Assist in weight management
- Improve balance and posture
- Decrease fatigue, muscle tension and stress; and
- Improve your overall wellbeing.
How much exercise should I be doing?
All Australian adults should be aiming to do at least 30 minutes of activity on most days of the week. You can do 30 minutes continuously or combine several shorter sessions.
- View the Australian physical activity and exercise guidelines to learn more
If you have not exercised for a while, you may need to start with shorter sessions then build up slowly. A physiotherapist or exercise physiologist can help by suggesting suitable exercises and making sure you are doing them correctly.
Some other ways you can include more activity in your day:
- walking
- exercising in water, e.g hydrotherapy (see Warm Water Exercise Classes)
- strength training (see Arthritis Moves)
- tai chi (see Tai Chi for Arthritis)
- pilates or yoga
- cycling
- dancing (see Dance for Arthritis)
- activities such as gardening, housework, playing with kids, grandkids or pets.
